Sand Lizards want to ‘leave no doubt’DARDANELLE — Josh Price knew the Dardanelle Sand Lizards were a special football team, but he was pleasantly surprised to discover just how special they’ve been. Price’s seniors will supercede last year’s group as the winningest class to move through the program in school history. This year’s bunch will finish the regular season 31-5, assuming they take care of business against the Subiaco Trojans on Friday. The 2014 Sand Lizards finished 30-8...

Junior Red Devils win 3A-2ATKINS — It started with a 6-0 Rivals Cup win over the Dover Junior Pirates and ended with an Atkins Junior Red Devils 6-0 victory over the Bald Knob Junior Bulldogs. In between? A perfect season. The Junior Red Devils went undefeated and won the 3A-2 Conference last week with their win over Bald Knob. “We had a great group of ninth-graders who got a lot of experience as eighth-graders,” Atkins head coach Matt Porter said. “We pretty much star...

Pirates compete in 4A-4 District meetThe Dover Pirates and Lady Pirates cross country teams ran at the 4-4A District meet on Oct. 27 at Arkansas Tech University and produced some strong finishes. In the senior girls race, All-State runner Katie Hartzell finished as the individual champion with a race time of 21:28. “I am very proud of this young lady,” Dover head coach Mike Heath said. “She has set goals this year, and one of them was to be the individual champion, and sure enoug...

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Courier sports staffThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Dawson returns to Siloam Springs with hungry CyclonesIt’s been 11 years since that magical season in 2004, and Russellville Cyclones head coach Billy Dawson remembers every bit of it. The Siloam Springs football program — which was trapped in a rut — started that season 7-0 under the leadership of Dawson, rekindling the Panther magic and igniting the town’s passion for football once again. “It was a great year,” Dawson said. “Siloam Springs is a great place. It’s one of our most enjoyable places...

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Special to The CourierThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Danville vying for 3A-4 championshipDANVILLE — There’s no doubt the Little Johns have been playing well this season. Danville (6-3, 5-1 3A-4 Conference) has averaged 45 points per game against 3A-4 opponents this year, 443 yards per game and is on a five-game winning streak. Yet, for the majority of the season, the Little Johns have rode the coattails of the Charleston Tigers and Lamar Warriors, who were ranked No. 1 and No. 3 for the majority of the season. The Tigers defeated ...

Whirlwinds downed in last game of seasonPEARCY — The Lake Hamilton Junior Wolves were too much for the Russellville Whirlwinds on Tuesday. The Junior Wolves scored on every possession during Russellville’s 36-3 defeat. It was the Whirlwinds final game of the season. Russellville finished 4-6 on the year and 3-6 in the River Valley Central Junior High Conference. The Junior Wolves overwhelmed the Whirlwinds 22-0 in the first half of play on Tuesday. After forcing Russellville to punt...

Apaches rumble past SenatorsLITTLE ROCK — For three quarters of football, the Pulaski Robinson Senators looked to have the game in hand and led the Pottsville Apaches 27-7 as the third quarter came to a close. However, the fourth quarter belonged to the Apaches as they came storming back with 21 unanswered points how to beat the Senators 28-27. It was a 16-yard completion from Jake Dugger to Austin Bell with 36 seconds left in the game that tied the contest at 27. Stephe...

Wildcats dominate BeardenBEARDEN — The Hector Wildcats gave the Bearden Bears all they wanted on Friday at Eldred Rogers Field. Hector scored 28 points in the first quarter on its way to a 48-16 victory. Wildcats head coach Mark Taylor said he was feeling good after the game. "Our defense was unbelievable," Taylor said. "We blocked a punt to set up the first score, then we had the fumble returned for a touchdown, then an interception. Those things were huge." Taylor s...

Sand Lizards defeat Dover 49-0DARDANELLE — Dover Pirates head coach Greg Smith reflected on his team's 49-0 loss to the No. 1 ranked Dardanelle Sand Lizards on Friday at Bob Keenan Field. “It's going to take a very, very good team to beat them,” he said. Dardanelle (9-0, 6-0 4A-4 Conference) won the 4A-4 Conference outright on Friday, while Dover (7-2, 4-2) suffered from what Smith said was a series of mistakes and miscues. “We had covering issues early,” he explained. “We...

Little Johns thump ParisDANVILLE — The Danville Little Johns defeated the Paris Eagles 35-27 on Friday at Little John Field. Chris Thurman opened the scoring for Danville with a 1-yard run. Omar Aquino added the PAT to make it 7-0 in the first quarter. Jake Madding made it 14-0 on a 15-yard run, and before long, the Little Johns went up 21-0 on a 27-yard run by Madding. Paris scored on a 16-yard run by Nate Davidson just before halftime. The Eagles added the PAT kick...

Cyclones stumble to ConwayCONWAY — The Wampus Cats garnered 479 yards of total offense and held off the visiting Russellville Cyclones for a 44-22 win Friday night at John McConnell Stadium. Neither team managed to score in the first quarter, but Conway (5-4, 4-2 7A/6A-Central Conference) missed a first-down opportunity when the ball was snapped over the head of the McCall Dail and the Wampus Cats lost 19 yards. Russellville’s first punt of 43 yards forced Conway to st...

ATU travels to Northwestern Oklahoma StateIt’s been more than two decades since Arkansas Tech University had the opportunity to make this many edits to the rushing offense portion of its football record book. The Wonder Boys (6-2) will lean on that running game to carry them through their final and longest road trip of the 2015 regular season when they take on Northwestern Oklahoma State University (3-5) in Great American Conference action at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 31, at Ranger Fie...

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ATU Athletic CommunicationsThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Whirlwinds defeat Cabot 20-13Quarterback Rhett Adkins led the Russellville Junior High Whirlwinds to a 20-13 victory over the Cabot North Junior Panthers on Thursday at Cyclone Stadium. Adkins was perfect through the air. He completed 18-of-18 passes for 215 yards and two touchdowns. Adkins’ favorite target, Bryson Kordsmeier finished the night with 12 catches for 195 yards and two touchdowns. Cabot attempted to work the clock on the Whirlwinds but ultimately wound time d...

Hudson reaches quarterfinalsLITTLE ROCK — Pottsville’s Kyle Hudson, who recently won the Class 4A state championship in singles tennis, competed in the overall state tournament on Wednesday on Oct. 28. Hudson faced Class 2A state champion Grant Mason from Riverside in the first round and defeated him 6-0, 6-0. Hudson was defeated by Pulaski Robinson’s Hunter Harrison in the quarterfinals of the tournament by a score of 6-2, 6-3. “Kyle played phenomenal tennis not just to...

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Courier sports staffThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Junior Lizards sweep 4A-4 District meetThe Dardanelle Junior Sand Lizards and Junior Lady Sand Lizards swept the 4A-4 District cross country meet on Tuesday at Arkansas Tech University. The Junior Lady Sand Lizards won the meet with a team score of 23 and were led by Olivia Gaspard, who finished first overall with a time of 13:19. The Junior Sand Lizards won with a team score of 25. Pablo Careon led Dardanelle with a second place finish. Other medalists in the both races were Haven...

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Lady Cyclones fall in 6A semisGREENWOOD — The Russellville Lady Cyclones lost to the Marion Lady Patriots 27-25, 26-17, 26-24 on Thursday in the semifinals of the Class 6A State Playoffs. Russellville lost on a rotation violation penalty in the final set. The Lady Cyclones trailed 25-24 when the penalty was called, but the violation gave Marion the victory after three close sets. Russellville dug out of a 10-4 deficit to eventually tie the Lady Patriots 24-24 in the first ...

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RHS seeks to end Conway rivalry with winThe Russellville Cyclones and Conway Wampus Cats rivalry ain’t what it used to be. In fact, it could be over after Friday’s game at John McConnell Stadium. Russellville will move into the 6A-West Conference next year, while Conway heads to the 7A-Central. The teams did not schedule each other as nonconference opponents. Russellville (3-5, 2-3 7A/6A-Central Conference) has played Conway 89 times since 1909 and every season since 1949 (67 years ...

Pirates hope to plunder 4A-4 from LizardsDARDANELLE — Can the Dover Pirates keep pace with the Dardanelle Sand Lizards on Friday at Bob Keenan Field? Dover (7-1, 4-1 4A-4 Conference) head coach Greg Smith said it’s going to take “absolute focus and a perfect game” from the Pirates. “Dardanelle is playing near-perfect football right now,” Smith said. “They are definitely a good team. They’re on a good roll there. I don’t know that anyone will have a leg up on them, I mean, even in the...

Texas quarterback makes name for himself at RHSThe Russellville Cyclones tried three players at quarterback through five games. Plagued with injuries at the position, Russellville had a serious problem: Who would lead the Cyclones offense under center? The answer slowly became apparent: a move-in from Fort Worth, Texas. Calm. Collected. Junior Cale Fulsom. “He’s a quiet leader,” Russellville head coach Billy Dawson said. “He’s not a real vocal guy, but he’s very intelligent and very smooth...